# Guide for the Perplexed (annotated)

**URL:** <http://discourse.iapct.org/t/guide-for-the-perplexed-annotated/4928>\
**Category:** CSG1998\
**Created:** [May 1, 1998, 11:09am UTC](http://discourse.iapct.org/t/guide-for-the-perplexed-annotated/4928 "1998-05-01T11:09:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Chris\_Cherpas](http://discourse.iapct.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Chris\_Cherpas](http://discourse.iapct.org/u/Chris_Cherpas)\
**Post date:** [May 1, 1998, 11:09am UTC](http://discourse.iapct.org/t/guide-for-the-perplexed-annotated/4928/1 "1998-05-01T11:09:18Z")

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[From Chris Cherpas (980501.0400 PT)]

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> Welcome to CSGnet. We want your visit to be pleasant and instructive. Things  
> will go smoothly if you observe the following simple rules: ...

I don't visit CSGnet for what is pleasant and smooth, but I often get  
what  
is instructive. Fortunately, my Netscape inbox shows me who sent each  
post  
and I can quickly delete posts from Bruce Gregory without actually  
having  
to read them (you can do the same with mine). I find this makes the  
experience  
instructive and \_efficient\_. I do learn from Bruce Gregory's posts --  
by just  
reading replies to them from participants having the most experience  
with PCT  
(e.g., Bill Powers).

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 1. Ask questions. The more technical the better. Either Bill or Rick will  
> provide very clear and helpful answers. If you need further clarification,  
> ask for it.

Powers and Marken are obviously well qualified to answer questions on  
PCT.  
What else would you expect? They often serve as teachers here. I  
haven't  
found better. Better them than Bruce Gregory, don't you think?

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 2. Read B:CP at least once a year. More often if possible. The book contains  
> a great deal of material and you must read it half a dozen times to gain the  
> greatest benefit.

Don't avoid re-reading if it increases your understanding.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 3. Keep your good ideas to yourself. If you are not prepared to offer an  
> explicit model, you are better off saying nothing. If you are tempted to  
> ignore this rule, by all means keep the next one.

Your good ideas about PCT are likely to get even better after being  
discussed here. Whatever you say here, if you focus on PCT, you're  
likely to learn something. To go further than an initial good idea,  
you'll likely want to consider modeling it explicitly or ask for help  
in doing so.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 4. If you encounter resistance from Bill or Rick, back off at once. Change  
> the subject. Unless that is, if you enjoy trading insults and engaging in  
> exchanges that go nowhere. Neither Bill nor Rick are famous for changing  
> their minds about anything.

I enjoy insulting someone as much as anyone, but that has little to do  
with Powers or Marken changing their minds. If you want to see them  
change  
their minds, try making a good argument instead of composing posts,  
like  
this one, which go nowhere. Powers and Marken are famous for knowing  
PCT;  
that's why you might want their comments on what you say about PCT.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 5. If Rick is talking about a model, pay close and careful attention to what  
> he says. He knows what he is talking about. If Rick is addressing someone  
> else's understanding of PCT, ignore him. He has a tendency to erect straw  
> men and to pummel them mercilessly.

Marken is a proven modeler. He's had the experience to know what he is  
talking about. We all want to avoid straw men that stand in the way of  
improving our understanding. I trust that pointing out specific  
fallacies is  
part of the process of the discussion which helps refine our  
understanding.  
CSGnet posts (except mine) are not always flawlessly constructed. The  
medium  
allows rapid pace, informal exchanges which may be revised and  
elaborated, and  
can eventually lead to something quite constructive, but the potential  
for  
decadence is always there. Bruce Gregory's "erect straw men" comment  
is no  
exception.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 6. Most of what Bill writes is lucid and well thought out. His social views  
> however tend toward the knee-jerk radical. Cherish the former and avoid the  
> latter.

Social views expressed by the originator and current top developer  
of PCT have not appeared knee-jerk to me. Interpretations of broad  
social  
phenomena are more speculative than analyses of tracking experiments,  
but are nonetheless instructive about, and for, PCT. I have found  
Powers highly reflective and revealing of how he arrives at such  
statements. Bruce Gregory controls for the perception of knee-jerk  
radical statements, and offers this as a public service for CSGnet at  
the  
cost of a few thousand wasted bytes on everyone's disks per day.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 7. Applications of PCT, with the exception of the Method of Levels, get  
> short shrift here. Stick to models and you will get along fine.

I believe applications would be greatly appreciated by all. However,  
we are  
discussing long-evolved systems. Interventions have to be considered  
carefully.  
Getting from apparent phenomena to models is difficult, perhaps  
especially  
so for applications with socially significant impact. Keep your  
attention  
on these problems, and let reorganization do what it can.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> 8. Avoid, whenever possible, the temptation to state things in your own  
> words. Stick to the technical use of terms and you will stay out of trouble.

Your own words will converge to the technical terms as you understand  
PCT  
better in most cases. If PCT terminology needs to develop  
along some original lines you suggest, so much the better for PCT.

Bruce Gregory (98430.0645 EDT)--

> One Who Knows

Again, if you wait for a veteran PCTer's replies to Bruce Gregory's  
posts,  
you may learn something valuable. I sincerely appreciate Bruce  
Gregory's  
contributions in this respect.

Best regards,  
cc

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**Author:** ![Bruce\_Gregory](http://discourse.iapct.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Bruce\_Gregory](http://discourse.iapct.org/u/Bruce_Gregory)\
**Post date:** [May 1, 1998, 1:38pm UTC](http://discourse.iapct.org/t/guide-for-the-perplexed-annotated/4928/2 "1998-05-01T13:38:31Z")

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[From Bruce Gregory (980501.0940 EDT)]

Chris Cherpas (980501.0400 PT)]

> Again, if you wait for a veteran PCTer's replies to Bruce Gregory's  
> posts,  
> you may learn something valuable. I sincerely appreciate Bruce  
> Gregory's  
> contributions in this respect.

You're welcome.

Best Offer